Fabric article and fastener means therefor



Feb. 21, 1939. A ELLIS. JR 2,143,401

FABRIC ARTICLE AND FASTENER MEANS THEREFOR Filed Dec. 21, 1936 iii W27 Mia/'13 MM Patented Feb. 21, 1939 2,148,401

UNITED STATES, PATENT OFFICE FABRIC ARTICLE AND FASTENER MEANS THEREFOR Arthur Linwood Ellis, In, Plymouth, Masa, as-

signor to Arthur L. Ellis & (30., Inc., Boston, Mass, a corporation of Massachusetts Application December 21, 1936, Serial No. 116,915

2 Claims. (01. 4-149) This invention relates to a fabric article and ter of its base. The pin terminates as a head or fastener means therefor. It relates more espeknob I! which, as shown in Figures 3and 4, may cially to a combination of a fabric article with a be of frusto-conical shape and taper toward its fastener element capable of exerting a suctional outer end. Such a fastener maybe molded readgrip on a smooth surface and thus fastening the ily as a resilient or elastic unitary structure from 5 article combined therewith to such surface. a suitable rubber compound or its equivalent; and

The fastener used accordant with the present it is to be understood that in using the term "rubinvention and. adapted to be locked to and unher" in describing the material of construction of locked from an apertured fabric article whose apthe fastener I mean thereby to include rubber erture margins are rigid or reinforced by a metal substitutes or other materials having the resil- 10 eyelet or the like; and it consists of a cup-shaped, iency, elasticity, toughness, and other properties resilient, rubber member capable of exerting a of rubber requisite for the fastener hereof.

suctional grip on a smooth surface and a resilient In preparing a fabric article, namely, a shower rubber pin projecting externally from the base curtain. for engagement by the locking pin it of of such member and including a head capable of the fastener, an aperture is formed therein of a 15 being forced through an aperture ofsmalier didiameter or size somewhat smaller than that of mensions in the article to be fastened and thus to the base of the frusto-conical head or knob l2. lock the fastener to the article. Such a fastener Such an aperture I 3 is shown at a lower corner may be molded readily and at low expense as a hem portion ii of the thin fabric shower curtain one-piece or unitary structure from rubber or ll shown in Figure and th m s 1 t e ap- :0 equivalent resilient or elastic material and may erture are preferably reinforced or made rigid serve to good advantage as means for eflecting a by a metal eyelet l5 whose barrel portion passes quick and temporary fastening of an article to through the hem l5 and Whose flan es ar smooth surfaces. crimped against opposite faces of the hem,'which More particularly, the present invention inmay e formed by folding t c t ab c 119- :5 volves the interlocking of the fastener elements wardly into two layers and uniting the two layers of the foregoing type with the lower edgeportion as by a row of stitches l8 near the margin is of of a shower curtain, in which connection they may the folded up layer. 1 I serve to fix such edge portion temporarily against Because of the compressibility and resiliency of 3 the wall of the bath or shower stall and thus stop the rubber head 01 n b and its frusto-eonieel leakage of water past the lower curtain edge or tapering shape, it may be readily forced and/or vexatious flapping or movement of the through the barrel of the eyelet, the base or larger curtain such as commonly takes place during portion of the head contracting during its passage shower-bathing, especially when the curtain is of thr ugh th smaller s d barrel a p emergcomparatively thin, light-weight, watebrepellent ug rom th barrel recovering expanding to its 35 fabric. It is hence in such field of use that the ofmal si e a d S ap as wn n F ure prese'nt invention will now be described with ref- The shoulder or abutment 2i afforded between erence to the accompanying drawing, wherein,- t shank of the P and the head I! thus 1 Figure 1 illustrates more or less diagrammatigages over or ag s t eyelet flange d 40 cally the use of the fastener hereof for fixing the serves to lock the fastener to the curtain. This 40 1 lower edge portion of a shower curtain to the wall locking engagement between the fastener and the of a combined tub and shower bath. curtain is a strong one that can be undone only Figure 2 depicts in perspective the fastener by fo c g of Contracting the Shoulder-I0 a hereof and a lower corner fragment of a shower into the barrel of the eyelet, as y 8 D y instrucurtain containing an eyeleted aperture for the ment. It is preferable that the shank of the Pin 45 reception of the locking pin of the fastener. be of a diameter or size substantially equal to or Figure 3 is a vertical section through the fasslightly less than that of the eyelet barrel and tener and the eyeleted portion f the urtai that the length of the shank be substantially equal Figure 4 is a section on theline l-J of Figure 1 to or slightly greater than the length of the barrel showing the fastener in gripping relationship to so that there may be little tendency for looseness 50 the bath wall and its locking pin locked to the between the Curtain and the locking D n eyeleted portion of the curtain. In fastening the fastener hereof to a smooth As appears in Figure 2, the fastener hereof consurface-all that need be done is to press the edges sists of a cupped or cup-shaped member In and a of the cupped or cup-shaped membe l a a ns locking pin ll projecting externally from the centhe smooth surface so as to flatten out such mem- 66 her. In so doing, the air enclosed by the cupshaped member is expelled and when the flattening pressure is removed and the member, by virtue of its .resiliency or elasticity, tends partially to recover or reassume its cup shape, as appears in Figure 4, a suction space or partial vacuum is created between the smooth surface 22 against which the member was pressed and the internal wall 23 of the member. This suction tends to hold or fix the fastener and the article engaged thereby to the smooth surface. By compressing together opposite edgs of the cup-shaped member l0, it is possible to break the partial vacuum and thus to free the fastener and the article enjoyed thereby from the smooth surface. The

cup-shaped member then recovers its full or normal cup-shape shown in Figures 2 and 3.

Figure l, which illustrates the use of the fastener hereof for fixing the lower edge portion of the shower curtain ll to the bath wall, shows the upper edge portion of the curtain provided with a series of rings 24 by which the curtain is suspended from a' rod 25. The curtain together with the opposite wall 26 and the end walls 21 may define the shower-bath stall or space into which water is showered or sprayed from a nozzle 29. The bottom or base of the shower bath may be afforded by a bath tub 30, as is commonly the case. Each lower corner portion of the curtain l4, whose lower edge portion projects over the smooth internal side wall surface 22 of the tub, may be interlocked with the locking pin of the fastener hereof and the cup-shaped member ill of each fastener may be caused to exert a strong suctional grip on such wall surface and thus to fix the lower edge portion of the curtain against annoying movement during shower bathing. It

-might be noted that the presence of a film of moisture between the smooth wall surface of the tub and the edges of the cup-shaped member l0, such as is readily had in a bath, tends to seal the partial vacuum or suctional space M in the member against leakage of air thereinto. Accordingly, the fastening of the bottom edges of the curtain to the bath wall is a strong and enduring one that requires manual breakage. Should the fastener hereof lose its resiliency or elasticity after a period of use or otherwise become impaired, it may be unlocked without difliculty from the curtain and replaced by a new one.

I claim:

1. The combination with a thin, flexible, fabric shower-bath curtain containing at its lower, edge portion an aperture whose margins are defined by a rigid metal eyelet clinched to said curtain. of means for fastening the lower edge portion of said curtain to the bath wall, said means consisting of a cupped, resilient, rubber member capable of exerting a suctional grip when pressed on the bath wall and a resilient, rubber pin integral with said member and projecting externally from the base thereof, said pin including a shank passing through the aperture of said ourtain and a head of larger dimensions than said aperture engaging over the metal eyelet margins of said aperture and thus locking said pin to said curtain.

2. The combination with a thin, flexible fabric shower-bath curtain containing at its lower edge portion an aperture and a relatively rigid metal reinforcement at the margins of said aperture, of means for fastening the lower edge portion of said curtain to the bath wall, said means consisting of a cupped, resilient rubber m'ember capable of exerting a suctional grip when pressed on the bath wall and a resilient rubber pin integral with said member and projecting externally from the base thereof, said pin including a shank passing through the aperture of said curtain and a head of larger dimensions than said aperture engaging over the relatively rigid reinforcement at the aperture margins and thus locking said pin to said curtain.

ARTHUR LINWOOD ELLIS, JR. 

